Introduction
In the last decade, the number of companies opting for a call center outsourcing vendor has significantly increased. It is a common fact that establishing a multi-channel call center within the company can be expensive and time-consuming. On the other hand, it comes with a lot of responsibilities to hire skilled people, invest in technology and infrastructure, and many more.
However, it is much easier to select a reliable call center outsourcing vendor and get the desired services while making a smooth flow of your business operations. It is very important to serve your customers in the best way possible along with developing a product that your customer needs. In this blog, we are going to discuss the process of evaluating your call center outsourcing vendor in a detailed way.
Tips to Evaluate a Call Center Outsourcing Vendor
There are ample call center outsourcing partners available in the market. Nevertheless, selecting the right outsourcing partner can be a daunting task and it requires a lot of research and patience. As per the business requirements, it is indeed a cumbersome task to opt for the services offered by the BPO agencies within the given budget. Below are a few vital criteria that need to be considered whenever you will choose the perfect call center outsourcing partner for your company.
1. Industry Experience
One of the most important criteria to consider during finding the right call center outsourcing partner for your company is specific industry knowledge. The agency must be experienced enough to deal with the challenges that will come during the process. Apart from that, it should also know how to deal with the client’s requirements and customize them as per the project requirements. Industry experience is essential as the more experience the firm will have the more it will deliver quality service within the given deadline.
2. Staff Qualifications
While choosing the perfect call center outsourcing partner, always check the professionals and staff who will be involved in your project. The staff should be skilled enough to deal with the complications and deliver the work within time. Always make sure that the outsourcing agency has a training and development program for its staff so that they can work efficiently and strictly adhere to the project deadline. They should know how to work using the latest tools, trends, techniques, and technologies, and the agency should constantly motivate them for increased productivity.
3. Expense
Payment consideration is the most significant aspect that a company of any sector will consider during their process of call center outsourcing vendor selection. Always look for the pricing of the competitors and the quality of services offered by them. Try to negotiate with the agencies so that you can get the best deal on your budget without compromising on the services. Cost-effectiveness is the main reason that companies outsource their business functions. Hence, the expense must be checked in a detailed manner before you finalize the outsourcing partner you will go with.
4. Quality Assurance
The quality of the services provided by the outsourcing partner should be of top-notch quality and with zero errors. The quality of your project is directly proportional to the service delivery of your business. Whenever you are communicating with the outsourcing agencies, make sure that they are very good at communication and the service delivery should be error-free and within time. Also, make sure to check the measures taken by the third-party service providers to maintain the quality of the project.
5. Access to Technology
Technological standards are the factor that will determine the quality of the project. Check with the outsourcing agencies who are known to use the latest tools and technologies for delivering their client’s projects, otherwise, your project will be outdated. Check with the companies whether they are providing timely updates or not. Updates of software used in the operations are essential to meet the customer needs as well as during the business expansion. The project delivery should be flexible enough so that it can help in business expansion as well as customer acquisition also.
6. Data Security
When opting for cloud-based services or on-premise services from your outsourcing partner, it is very important to check the data compliance and security measures they are using. You will be sharing sensitive information and valuable data with the agency which should be private. Make sure to sign a non-disclosure agreement and check the security protocols used by the agency and mention them in the agreement documents. Before committing to any decision, all kinds of privacy measures and the cloud platforms need to be checked so that you can retrieve data whenever required if it is misplaced by any chance.
7. Global Presence
Always ensure that the call center outsourcing partner has worked with clients across the globe. The agency must have a global presence as they will interact with various types of clients and must have possessed experience in handling critical issues during the process of service delivery. It is also a fact that companies with a global presence have better communication which is an essential criterion of selecting the perfect call center outsourcing partner. The global exposure and the skilled resources will add value to the quality of services offered by the vendor.
8. Transition Process Methodology
The process of transition is very crucial whenever a company is outsourcing its business functions to another company. Whether you have outsourced customer support or tech support, the transition process methodology is crucial to avoid any bumps and interruptions in the outsourced functions. A well-defined flexible transition methodology is indeed required to get a seamless process transition from a call center outsourcing partner to your company.
9. Previous Clients and References
Always research multiple vendors and check their type of services, prices, and clients served by them. If you have any reference from someone, then it is best to go with that or at least communicate with them while mentioning the source of your reference. It will not only help you in getting a good price for the services but also, they will assure you of providing better service quality as their brand reputation is involved in it. Or else, you can check with the clients the outsourcing agency has served before regarding their experience while doing business with the third-party service provider.
10. Strategic Alliances
Successful call center providers are known for having strategic alliances which are usually helpful to their clients. It is recommended that you ask for the type of relations the outsourcing agency maintains with their alliance partner companies. A service provider’s strategic alliances may include testing firms, disaster recovery houses, data security firms, marketing agencies, and methodology consultants. These alliances are usually proven to be useful in the long run.
Final Thoughts
Companies might wonder if it is better to maintain all business functions within an in-house team. But in most cases, it is not feasible, as there is a huge capital investment involved in it. On the other hand, if you choose to outsource your business functions not only you will enjoy cost-effectiveness but also you will get better results within your stipulated time. For a startup company, it is indeed very tough to choose the right call center outsourcing partner for their non-core business functions, as there are budget constraints, time constraints, etc. However, we have listed a few criteria that can be considered while searching for the best outsourcing partner.
